


Trust Falls

by Longpig



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alteans are Magical Creatures, Crash Landing, Enemies to...Something, F/M, First Kiss, Getting to Know Each Other, Post-Season 4, Stranded
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-11-26
Updated: 2017-11-26
Packaged: 2019-02-05 00:05:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,355
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12782565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Longpig/pseuds/Longpig
Summary: After his surrender to the Coalition, Prince Lotor offers to reveal the location of an abandoned Altean outpost as a gesture of goodwill, and Allura can't refuse the opportunity to find clues to any possible survivors of her people. The mission, however, does not go to plan; and she finds herself stuck on an unhospitable planet with the last person she'd want to be stranded alongside. Allura and Lotor will have to learn to trust each other and find some common ground if they are to make it through this ordeal...





	Trust Falls

This mission had been ill-advised. Allura had been suspicious from the outset, when Lotor had offered to share the location of an abandoned Altean base he’d discovered. As a show of good faith, he’d said, making it sound so very  _ grandiose. _ According to him, it had been established by a group of survivors after the destruction of Altea, but before the Galra had completely overrun the universe. He was certain that it would yield resources—weapons, maybe—useful to the coalition. It was possible, he intimated, that they might even discover clues as to where any other groups of Altean survivors might have fled. There was just one small difficulty—he couldn’t seem to recall the outpost’s precise coordinates, only its general location. Oh, he was certain he could find it again, of course, but he would need to go with the Paladins himself.  _ Naturally.  _ It was all rather too convenient, despite whatever Hunk had said about gifts and ungulate mouths.

Allura didn’t trust Lotor as far as she could throw—well, not  _ him _ , because that would be a considerable distance, especially if properly motivated—the castle, perhaps. She had to concede, however, that if there was even a possibility that he was telling the truth, the opportunity would be too great to pass up. The idea that there could be other Alteans out there somewhere, besides herself and Coran—and technically Lotor, she supposed—was one she hadn’t dared to entertain before. Once it had taken root, there was no way she could put it out of her mind.

Her skepticism had resurged when they arrived at the planet only to discover that its atmosphere was so turbulent that landing the castle ship would be impossible. They had waited a full quintant, but the monster storms that enveloped the world showed no signs of abating. Finally, despite objections from Shiro and Coran, they had decided to take the Lions to investigate the surface. Since she was the only one who could conceivably overpower Lotor if he  _ did _ try anything, he would ride with her, restrained, in the Blue Lion.

“Is this how you treat all of your allies?” he’d scoffed as Keith secured the cuffs behind his back.

“You’re not our ally,” Shiro growled, still unhappy about having been overruled. “Not yet, anyway.” Lotor just smirked, as though they were putting on a terribly amusing show purely for his entertainment. She’d resisted the urge to slap him then—barely—but now she wondered if she shouldn’t have heeded that impulse.

The plan, such as it was, had fallen apart almost as soon as they entered the atmosphere. The ion storms over the mountain range they were targeting interfered with both navigation and comms. It was even worse than what they’d experienced on Thayserix—while she could still use Blue’s sonar to avoid obstacles, it was only a few dobashes before she lost contact with the others. She was completely cut off.

“I suppose you think I planned all of this,” Lotor commented from his seat behind her. He sounded almost  _ bored _ —it was infuriating. “I assure you that the last time I was here, the atmospheric conditions were—”

“Just shut your quiznaking mouth and let me fly my Lion,” she snapped, gripping the control levers with white knuckles. Blue shuddered as another powerful gust of wind buffeted her.

“Of course, Princess,” he replied, nonchalant. “Don’t mind me.” Allura could  _ hear _ the smirk. She gritted her teeth, biting back a retort.

The Lion lurched again, almost hard enough to wrench the controls from her hands. The storm was getting worse; now she could hear hailstones slamming against the chassis.  _ Stars, they must be as big as Trifelian melons.  _ She tried again to hail any of the other Paladins, but it was no use. There was nothing but static on the comms.

“Quiznak this,” she muttered. “I’m taking us up out of this mess. We’re going back to the castle.”

“But the base—”

“—will  _ wait _ until we can figure out a way to approach it safely!” _ If it even exists. _ She pulled back hard on the control sticks, urging Blue upward.

A deafening crash and a searing flash of light halted their progress. The cockpit went dark, the control levers slack in Allura’s hands. The Lion pitched and reeled as she tried to blink away the afterimage seared into her retinas.

“We’ve been hit! You’ve led us into a trap,” she cried accusingly. She jabbed a finger at the dimmed displays in front of her, trying in vain to call up emergency backups.

“Why would I?” Lotor yelled back, his composure finally cracking. “I’m in here with you!”

She didn’t have an answer for that. It didn’t matter anyway. Whatever the cause, the imminent result would be the same. They were crashing, plummeting toward the planet’s surface at ever-increasing speed. The dark spine of the mountain range burst through the swirling clouds, filling the viewport. Allura gave the control levers another desperate shake, knowing full well that it was futile. She braced herself for the impact just as the Blue Lion collided face first with the mountainside, plowing a deep furrow down the slope as it slid and rolled towards its base. She heard Lotor shout in alarm as he was thrown from his seat and slammed into the back of her own. Allura felt a small pang of guilt—they really ought to have made sure their prisoner/prospective ally was properly strapped in—but she was too preoccupied to spare it any more thought. She was struggling just to keep her breakfast down, and she was beginning to think her teeth might rattle out of her skull.

There was another violent impact as the lion crashed into some unseen obstacle, and then everything went still. When the dust in front of the viewport settled, Allura found herself looking out at a darkened, stormy sky streaked with red and purple lightning. The bright flashes illuminated a barren, rocky plain some distance below, stretching out as far as she could see. There was no sign of the other lions, but at least she was right side up and in one piece. Her passenger, however…

“Lotor?” She craned her neck to try and see behind her seat as she wrestled with the buckles of her safety harness. She could hear him breathing—that was encouraging, at least—but otherwise the only sounds were the creaking of the hull, and the slow tick of cooling metal. She found him sprawled on the floor between the two seats, face down and unmoving. Biting her lip, she carefully rolled him over. He was unconscious, but she couldn’t make out any obvious trauma, much to her relief. Despite her misgivings, she didn’t want to be responsible for him coming to serious harm, particularly if it turned out that he  _ had _ been telling the truth.

Uncertain of what to do next, she pulled off his helmet, letting his fine white hair spill over his shoulders. She was struck, momentarily, by how handsome—how very  _ Altean _ he looked. She’d recognized his heritage as soon as he’d stepped off his ship, of course; but seeing him like this, his sharp features softened in repose… She could all too easily imagine a reality where things had gone differently; where they might have been childhood friends, or even…

Lotor opened his eyes, saving her from her own thoughts.

“You’re awake.” She sat back on her haunches, feeling unaccountably flustered. She schooled her expression, pushing the unwelcome emotion aside. “Are you alright?”

“You won’t get rid of me that easily, Paladin.” He quirked a small, crooked smile that caught her off guard. It vanished as quickly as it had appeared, and all traces of softness were banished once more as he sat up to take in his surroundings. “What is our situation?”

“I’ve lost power to all systems, so it’s difficult to assess the damage,” she replied, grateful to be back to business. “The Lion will repair itself, but I have no idea how long that might take. Or if we can even escape the atmosphere once it does, unless this weather lets up,” she sighed, with a rueful shake of her head.

As if to reinforce the uncertainty of their predicament, the Lion shuddered again, throwing her off balance. “I’m not sure our position is entirely stable,” she frowned. “I’m going outside to investigate. Stay here.”

“Where would I go?” he asked sardonically. Allura had an idea about where he could go, but she kept it to herself.

The damage to the hull didn’t look as bad as she’d feared. It was dented and scratched, and there were a few places were rents in the metal exposed some of the inner workings, but it was more or less intact. The position of the Lion was what worried her. It had come to rest on a narrow, sloped ledge jutting out over a dizzying drop, with its flank against the mountainside, and its back end dangling off the side. She thoroughly misliked the way it was balanced. The icy winds were nearly as fierce here as they had been in flight, and a particularly large piece of flying debris or ice would be all it took to send Blue tumbling down into the darkness.

"We can’t stay here,” she announced as she ducked back into the cockpit. She reached for the compartment overhead, and pulled out the pack of emergency gear stowed there. “We’ll have to find somewhere else to take shelter.”

“Very well then. If you would be so kind?” Lotor twisted to the side, and lifted his cuffed wrists expectantly. “I’m not climbing down a mountain with my hands tied behind my back.”

A frown creased her brow, and she hesitated for a tick, but then nodded. It was a fair point. She knelt beside him, withdrew the keychip from her belt pouch, and waved it over the lock. Nothing happened. She tried again; still nothing. Her frown deepened.

“Well?” Lotor prompted, glaring impatiently over his shoulder.

“The mechanism must have been damaged in the crash,” she reasoned. “You’ll just have to get yourself out.” His stunned, incredulous look might have been funny under less fraught circumstances. “We both know you’re perfectly able to escape those restraints.” It was her turn to be impatient. Even a half Altean should be capable of such a minor feat of shapeshifting.

He stared at her, speechless, for another tick, then looked away, scowling. “Fine.” He leaned forward and straightened his arms out behind him; then, to her horror, somehow twisted them up  _ over his head _ . His shoulders made an awful crunching sound that made her stomach lurch as he wrenched them beyond any normal range of motion. Allura continued to stare, aghast, as he pulled the cuffs apart, effortlessly snapping the energy tether.

“That’s disgusting!” she sputtered. “That’s not what I… what… why… why would you  _ do  _ that?”

“What did you expect?” he snapped, shaking out his wrists as he got to his feet.

“Why didn’t you just shift out of them?” she asked, bewildered.

Lotor narrowed his eyes, apparently just as confused as she was. “Why didn’t I what?”

“We—that is, Alteans—are a shapeshifting people… Can you not…?” She stared at him, baffled.

“No.” His tone was clipped, defensive. He turned away and bent to pick up his helmet. “And if you thought I could, why did you bother with the restraints at all?”

“It was mostly for the others’ benefit,” she admitted. She figured that, as they didn't seem to remember that she could change her shape and size, it wouldn't occur to them to be concerned about Lotor. The point was moot now, but it puzzled her nonetheless. If, as she suspected, his mother was Zarkon’s Altean witch, a bit of corporeal manipulation should be trivial. Perhaps he was never taught? Again she felt an unexpected twinge of concern. She looked at him askance as he rearranged his hair and replaced his helmet, gripping her arm against her side self-consciously. “Doesn’t… didn’t that hurt?”

“Of course it hurt,” Lotor laughed mirthlessly, “But I’m used to it.” He brushed past her and stepped out into the storm, leaving her to puzzle out his words. Why would the heir to Zarkon’s throne need to make a habit of self-harm? It made no sense. Then again, there was little about him that did. Less than a year ago she would never have believed that Zarkon could be a father. Since then, the coalition had come to know Lotor as Emperor Pro Tem of the Galra, an enigmatic adversary with unclear motivations and goals, then as a fugitive being hunted down by the Emperor himself, and now as an ostensible defector… And while Lotor was happy to supply them with information about the Empire, he was not inclined to shed any light on what had happened to so dramatically change his fortunes there. He was eager to make himself useful to the coalition, but not to integrate with it—not that most of them had given him a particularly warm reception, she reflected. She wondered, not for the first time, what had happened to the unit he’d been working with, and whether that had something to do with the distance he kept from even the friendlier members of the team.

_ This is not the time to be worrying about Lotor, _ Allura chided herself.  _ Unless it’s about him running off and leaving me here. _ She hurried out after him, but that fear, at least, had been unfounded. He was standing at the edge of the outcropping, staring down the mountainside with his arms crossed over his chest. The coattails of his suit flapped wildly in the gale.

“It’s a long way down,” he said, without turning around. “We’d best get moving.”

The descent was nearly as harrowing as the crash had been. The craggy rock had plenty of hand- and footholds, but the visibility was abysmal, and the icy rain made everything perilously slick. Allura was quietly grateful not to have to make the climb alone. Once, her cramping fingers lost their purchase, and she found herself scrabbling desperately at the rock. She was certain she was about to plummet to a messy death, until Lotor grabbed her wrist and held her steady while she regained her balance. She was even more grateful after that.

She wasn’t certain how much time actually passed, but it seemed like an eternity. By the time they reached the point where the sheer rock yielded finally to a gentler slope of loose shale and gravel, her hands were numb and her limbs were trembling. Exhausted, she sank to the ground and leaned back against the cliff, relishing the feeling of more or less solid earth beneath her. She was somewhat surprised, but not bothered, when Lotor sat down next to her. The silence they shared was almost… companionable.  _ They do say that trauma bonds. _ It was not lost on Allura that if it weren’t for his quick reflexes, she would have incurred a great deal more of it.

“Thank you for… for earlier,” she said, with a tentative smile.

“It wouldn’t do to have the last Princess of Altea splattered all over these rocks.” He glanced her way, smirking.

Annoyed, she turned away with a huff.  _ So much for bonding. _

A few uncomfortable doboshes passed before he spoke again, his voice barely audible above the wind. “Well… You’re welcome, anyway.”

Allura sighed, and rubbed distractedly at her temple. “Listen. We have no way of knowing how long we might be stranded here. If we’re going to make it off this planet, we must work together and  _ try _ to trust one another.” That would be the hard part, not least for herself; but Lotor had certainly had opportunities enough already if he’d wanted to betray her. Perhaps, she mused, it was time to revise her expectations. “Shall we start over?”  _ Without all the bravado? _

Lotor eyed her warily for a few ticks. For a fleeting instant, something in his expression reminded her of the stray cats she tried to befriend as a child on Altea, watching her hold out a morsel of food and trying to decide whether they were more hungry than they were suspicious… The moment passed, and he seemed to make up his mind. “Yes,” he said slowly. “I would like that.”

“Wonderful." She smiled with wan relief. “Now all we have to worry about is this atrocious weather.” The sky flashed ominously, and small hailstones clattered against her helmet. “We need to find somewhere out of the storm.” If only she had access to her Lion’s sonar scanner, it would be child’s play to find a cavern tro shelter them—but of course, if the Blue Lion were operational, they wouldn’t be in this predicament at all.

Lotor got to his feet and surveyed the valley floor intently. “Well, if my memory serves, the entrance to the outpost is only a few kilometres from here.” He looked back over his shoulder with a grin. “Your piloting skills never fail to impress, Princess.”

“Mine?” She blinked, surprised.

“Don’t think I’ve forgotten that you were the only Paladin to best me on Thayserix.”

“That was my first time piloting the Blue Lion,” she murmured, blushing.

“I could tell,” he laughed breezily, “but you learned  _ very _ quickly,” he added, seeing her frown. “And now you’ve managed to get us within a stone’s throw of our objective, despite all of this.” He gestured vaguely at the sky. “You should be proud of what you’ve achieved.”

“Oh… Thank you,” she managed, still caught off-guard by his flattery.

“Shall we, then?” He turned, and held out his hand. Allura hesitated barely a tick before taking it, and he pulled her effortlessly to her feet.

Lotor did seem to know where he was going now, his confidence growing the closer they got to their destination. He paused every so often to point out some landmark he recalled from his previous expedition, which gave Allura the chance to catch up to his longer strides. The latest of these waypoints was a crack in the canyon floor, scored with plasma burns.

“This is where Zethrid got her foot stuck in the rock,” he chuckled fondly, half to himself. “She tried to blast herself free and nearly shot her leg off. It took all four of us to pull her out...” The smile on his face died as he spoke, some other memory darkening his thoughts. For a breath he looked so sad and tired that Allura’s heart ached; but then he looked up again, and it was gone. “We’re almost there,” he said, staring off into the distance.

Indeed, it was only a half a varga more before they rounded a sharp bend to find the canyon’s blind end in front of them, with a heavy blast door set into the rock. Allura’s heart fluttered in her chest as she approached it—the design was distinctly Altean. Her hand hovered over the access scanner. What would she find on the other side? Clues to her people’s survival, or only more ghosts?

“Acxa was able to hack this door, although we had little success with those beyond,” Lotor was saying. “Perhaps it will be simpler for you.”

She nodded absently, and pressed her palm against the input pad. Designed to react to Altean energy, it glowed softly for a tick as she let a small amount of quintessence flow through her. The ancient mechanism rumbled to life, and the doors pulled apart, sliding back into the cliffside.

The chamber beyond was large, open and empty. It appeared to be a loading area, and perhaps a launch bay, judging by the black marks burned into the floor. She stepped inside, Lotor close behind her. The hatch slowly ground shut behind them, plunging the cavernous room into an eerie darkness pierced only by her headlamp.

“Everything’s been powered down,” she murmured, as she swept the beam of light over dimmed consoles and abandoned loading equipment. “If I can get to the central control room, I should be able to reactivate the station’s systems. Then we’ll have access to whatever there is left to find… not to mention lights, and heat,” she added with a smile. Her flight suit was insulated enough to withstand the vacuum of space, but the recycled air was beginning to taste stale, and it would be nice to take off her helmet without having to worry about hypothermia.

Lotor nodded, his eyes glowing faintly in the gloom. “I think I remember where that is.” When took her by the hand to lead her, she was too surprised to pull away. “Stay behind me. I can see better without the light in my eyes.”

Lotor’s memory proved accurate again. The control room lay behind another sealed door, but it opened as easily for her as the outer hatch had. Inside were banks of dimmed terminals surrounding a central platform which would conceal the main power posts, similar to those on the castle’s bridge. As she approached the dais, the slim columns emerged from the floor and rose toward her outstretched hands, reacting to her presence. She took a deep, calming breath as she grasped the pillars and reached out, allowing her energy to flow through them. Slowly, the station came alive around her. The lights flickered on, control panels blinked to life, and there was a rush of air as the ventilation system kicked in.

When she opened her eyes, Lotor was staring at her with a look of stunned disbelief. “Impressive.”

Allura looked away with a self-effacing shrug. “The system merely required an infusion of Altean energy to reactivate it. It was probably powered down to prevent the Galra from finding it and, well, doing precisely what we’re attempting,” she finished with a tired smile.

“I see,” he said, slowly, in a tone which implied that he did not. “Can we access the base’s schematics now?”

Allura nodded, and moved to one of the consoles. It was barely the work of a dobosh to bring up the plans on the overhead monitor. “Here we are.”

Lotor leaned around her, scrutinizing the map for the locations of armouries and other potential resources. “Much better than fumbling around in the dark,” he muttered under his breath as he reached past her to adjust his view.

Allura was suddenly acutely aware of his proximity. She felt warm, and strangely lightheaded.  _ Exhaustion, _ she told herself.  _ I must have overexerted myself. _ As she stepped away from the monitor, a wave of vertigo swept over her. She reached for the wall to brace herself, but misjudged the distance and pitched forward with a yelp, off-balance. Her vision blurred as the floor rushed up toward her…

When everything stopped spinning, she found herself looking up into Lotor’s blue and gold eyes. She hadn’t noticed until now quite how striking they were, like glittering chips of sapphire… So captivated was she that it took her several ticks to realize that he was actually speaking to her.

“...Princess? Are you alright?” He was kneeling over her, his hands on her shoulders.

Allura blinked in confusion as her senses returned.  _ Wait… What was I just thinking? _ She shook her head, her lips pursed into a frown. “I’m a bit drained, I’m afraid… It’s been rather a long day, and replenishing the outpost’s power took more out of me than I realized,” she explained, her cheeks colouring with embarrassment.

“You need to rest,” he said firmly. “None of this is going anywhere.”

Allura nodded, and let him help her to her feet. While she didn’t feel she necessarily  _ needed _ his arm to steady her as they walked, she was too tired to object.

When they found the common lounge, she was glad just to shrug off her backpack and finally remove her helmet. The long sofa was blissfully soft, and she sighed gratefully as she sank back into it.

“I don’t suppose you have any food in that bag,” Lotor asked as he put aside his own helm.

“Just emergency ration bars, I’m afraid.” She smiled apologetically as she withdrew one of the foil-wrapped packets.

“It makes a change from that green sludge, at least,” he sighed as he sat down next to her and plucked it from her hand.

Allura couldn’t repress her overtired giggle. “What, is Altean nutritional paste not to Your Highness’ taste?” She grinned as she unwrapped her own bar. Lotor wrinkled his nose and huffed indignantly, but didn’t appear genuinely affronted. On the contrary, he seemed more at ease now than she had ever seen him. They shared their meal—such as it was—in silence, but it was not uncomfortable.

By the time she finished her food, Allura was flagging, barely able to keep her eyes open. She curled up on her side and let them droop closed at last. She was aware on some level that Lotor was watching her, but his presence no longer bothered her. Only a few quintents ago, she wouldn’t have dared turn her back on him, but now his company was strangely reassuring.  _ Or perhaps I’m just too tired to worry about it. _ She was so exhausted that her very bones felt heavy, weighing her down to the sofa and pulling her into sleep.

She must have slept for several vargas, for when she woke up she felt quite thoroughly relaxed and refreshed, if a little stiff-necked. Lotor was nowhere to be seen, but there was a blanket tucked around her that hadn’t been there before. She felt certain, somehow, that he couldn’t have gone far. She sat up and treated herself to a languid, satisfying stretch before foraging in her rucksack for another ration bar.

Basic needs addressed, she wrapped the blanket around her shoulders and padded over to a data terminal set into the wall. It was probably intended for entertainment, but it was connected to the station’s central databanks, and so would serve her purposes adequately. Allura took a deep breath, and prepared to hunt for ghosts.

Lotor returned a couple of vargas later, to find her resettled on the settee, lost in thought with her knees tucked up under her chin. “Did you find what you were looking for, Princess?”

“I suppose so,” she sighed, unfolding and stretching her legs. “From what I’ve pieced together so far, the people here fled when they detected a Galra ship arriving in the sector. There are reams of personal logs to go through though; they could provide all sorts of information about what happened after… after I went to sleep. And I did find coordinates of some other refugee colonies we could search for,” she added. They might be long gone too, but it was somewhere to start at least. “What about you?”

"A few weapons and munitions,” he shrugged. “Some heavier equipment. Crates of supplies and sundries. It's nothing universe-altering, but I'm sure the coalition can put it to use—most likely it’s just what the Alteans didn’t have time to load before they absconded.”

“Perhaps they thought they might be able to return,” she reflected sadly.  _ Where did you go? _ There was, however, one other Altean who  _ was _ here now, and there was a question she’d been meaning to put to him.

“May I ask you something?”

“You may ask.” He was smiling, but his eyes were cautious.

“Why didn’t you take all of this when you were here before?”

“I told you, we couldn’t get the station online. Everything was sealed up.” He crossed his arms over his chest, his posture defensive.

Allura pressed her lips together for a tick while she decided how best to approach the topic. “While it’s true that only a small number of Alteans possess the aptitude for channeling their quintessence, you  _ should _ be able to do it, Lotor. I have—I can sense your energy.”

He stared back at her, speechless and bemused, his eyebrows drawn sharply together.

“Nobody ever taught you… any of this?”

Lotor looked away, his frown deepening. “I was not exactly encouraged to embrace my Altean heritage,” he muttered. “I’ve done a great deal of research on my own into the science and technology, but as for the more esoteric aspects…” He shrugged.

“If you like…” She hesitated, questioning her own judgement—but only for a tick. “I could try to teach you some things.”

He glanced sharply at her, his eyes wide with disbelief. “You would do that for me? Why?”

“Thanks to you, I’ve found the first clues to the fate of any surviving descendants of my—of our people.” Alura smiled warmly. “And if it weren’t for you, I would not have made it here. I’d be splattered all over the rocks, remember?”

That earned her a short laugh, and a slow smile. “Very well then; I accept your offer.”

“Come and sit.” She patted the seat next to her.

“Now?”

“Unless you have a more pressing engagement,” she laughed. She peeled off her gloves while he settled himself beside her.

Following her example, Lotor removed his armoured gauntlets, then turned cautiously toward her. “What do I—”

“Just this.” She reached out, taking his hands in hers. They were warm, and surprisingly soft. “Close your eyes,” she instructed. She tried to recall the meditative techniques she had been taught as a child. “Breathe.” She focused on the connection between them, searching for a certain sympathetic frequency.  _ There. _ “Do you feel it?” she breathed. “The energy between us?”

“I… I think so,” he murmured.

“Visualize that energy within yourself.” She lightly squeezed his hand; his grip tightened briefly, then relaxed again. “Think of this contact as a channel—a circuit.” His breathing deepened and slowed as he concentrated. “Now, try to manipulate that current. Just… a touch…”

Allura gasped as she felt him lean into their connection—his presence was more potent than she’d expected. The experience was intimate, in a way she hadn’t felt before; heady and intense. She felt herself being pulled in—she opened her eyes, but that was not enough to break the spell. Lotor’s gaze met hers, drawing her inexorably closer until her hips brushed his. Her pulse raced; she felt out of control, yet somehow purposeful. His hands slid up her arms as he pulled her closer to him. Allura’s head spun. This utterly defied her understanding... but perhaps she didn’t need to understand, only to feel. She reached out and ran her fingers through Lotor’s hair, leaning up into the kiss.

_ "Allura! Come in, Allura!” _ A faint, tinny voice broke through the entrancement, and jerked her back to reality. Flustered and disoriented, she pulled away from Lotor and reached for her helmet.  _ “Allura, can you hear me?” _ the voice called again.

“I’m here, Shiro!” she called back. She hoped he wouldn’t notice how breathless she sounded.

“Allura, thank God. Are you alright?”

“Yes, I—we’re fine.” She darted a guilty glance in Lotor’s direction, but he appeared to be studiously examining his hands. “And we’ve located the Altean outpost,” she added.

“Excellent. We’re locked on to your position; we should be there in just a couple of minutes. Pidge figured out a way to shield the Lions’ system from the atmospheric interference,” he explained.

“Wonderful. We’ll be waiting,” she signed off. “We should be back at the castle in time for our evening sludge,” she joked weakly. Lotor shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

“Princess, I must—I don’t know what came over me.” His face was flushed a deep red violet; Allura had to admit it was rather endearing.

“We can talk about it later,” she said, feeling a certain heat spread across her own cheeks, “but don’t you think we ought to be on a first name basis now?” She smiled shyly.

“I… suppose so”—the blush spread to the tips of his pointed ears—”Allura.”

Warmth fluttered through her at the way her name sounded on his lips. “Good,” she beamed, “because I have a great deal more to teach you.”

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Written for VLD Tropes Fest 2017; prompt was 'Stranded.'
> 
> This work is part of [VLD Tropes Fest](http://vldtropesfest.tumblr.com) | Comments and Kudos are appreciated | Anonymous creators will be revealed after the masterlist is posted!


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